Online Privacy Policy

Updated June 11, 2025 

Your privacy and security are very important to us. This Privacy Policy (the “Privacy Policy”) is intended to describe how the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (“RAINN”, “we” or “us”) collects, uses, discloses, and otherwise processes your Personal Information, including on our websites (“Sites”). “Personal Information” means any information that identifies, relates to, or could reasonably be linked to you or your household, including your name, address, phone number or email address. 

RAINN is the nation’s largest anti-sexual violence organization. As a non-profit organization, we carry out programs to prevent sexual violence, help survivors, and ensure that perpetrators are brought to justice. The way we handle your Personal Information depends on how you interact with us.

RAINN may change this Privacy Policy from time to time.  When we make material changes to our Privacy Policy, we will update the “Last Updated” date on this page and update you by email if we normally communicate with you through email.

You acknowledge that you have read and understood this Privacy Policy and agree to the collection, use, disclosure and processing of information (including your Personal Information) as described in this Privacy Policy. 

Throughout this policy, we distinguish between people who use different aspects of our services with the following terms: 

“Hotline Visitors” refers to individuals who use RAINN’s Confidential Hotline and Helproom Services. 

“RAINN’s Confidential Hotline and Helproom Services” refers to the hotline and helproom services RAINN operates, supports, and administrators through any and all channels (e.g., chat, telephone, text, WhatsApp) including the National Sexual Assault Hotline.

“Site Visitors” refers to individuals who visit the Sites while not interacting with RAINN’s Confidential Hotline and Helproom Services as “Hotline Visitors.”

HOTLINE VISITORS PRIVACY NOTICE 

RAINN will not request Personal Information from you that is unnecessary for you to share in order to access the service you’re looking for, no matter the channel (e.g., web, chat, telephone, text, WhatsApp). Hotline conversations are confidential and any chat or text conversations are only temporarily stored as described below. 

Personal Information received in connection with our Hotlines is not collected, used or disclosed, except as described below:

  • When required by applicable law: If you provide Personal Information to us, we may in some cases be required by law to disclose that information to the appropriate authorities, including if we fear that you or another person are in danger. 

  • For temporary storage and use: Our Online Hotline Platform uses non-persistent cookies to route conversations. As a result, we will temporarily store and process routing information, such as IP addresses. We take steps to preserve anonymity by erasing this routing information from our systems once the online hotline session ends. 

  • Phone numbers: When you use our voice and text hotlines, our phone carriers will collect and store phone numbers, including from incoming or outgoing calls and texts, for billing purposes.

  • Information disclosed for the purpose of accessing a non-anonymous hotline service benefit offered through a client hotline. 

SITE VISITORS PRIVACY NOTICE

The categories of Personal Information that we collect from you through the Sites, and how we use and disclose that information, depends on how you interact with us on the Sites and the information you provide.

Information You Provide Directly to Us Through the Sites

We collect the following types of Personal Information from you when you provide it directly to us, including when you donate or sign up for our newsletters, public policy updates and event updates: 

  • Name

  • Address 

  • Phone number 

  • Subscriber status 

  • Organization or employer name 

  • Email address

  • Donor transaction information (such as when you make a donation and the amount of such donation) 

Information We Automatically Collect Through Cookies and Other Technology on Our Sites

We use, and allow third parties to use, cookies and similar technologies on our Sites. A “cookie” is a text file placed on a user’s device. A “pixel” is a piece of code that is embedded on a website. We use these technologies to analyze the use of our Sites, customize and improve the content and layout of the Sites and provide relevant advertising across websites on the internet. 

When you visit the Sites, we may collect and disclose information through cookies and similar technology on the Sites. The information collected through cookies and other technologies can include information about your browser type, your location when you visit the Sites, IP address or activity or usage data. This information may be considered Personal Information. We may also use and retain this information to generate anonymized and aggregated statistics about visitors to our Sites and to otherwise analyze the visits to our Sites. 

For example, our Sites currently use Google Analytics, a web analytics service provided by Google, Inc. Google Analytics uses cookies to help us analyze how users use and visit the Sites. We may also use information received from cookies used by Google Analytics and the Sites to determine the success of our marketing (including the success of the emails we send) and learn about how visitors come to the Sites. For more information on how Google Analytics uses cookies, please visit:

Google Cookie Policy.  To opt out of the aggregation and analysis of data collected about you on our Sites by Google Analytics, please visit Google Analytics Help, then download and install the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on, as noted on this web webpage.

We also purchase advertisements on web and social media sites, including Facebook. Those advertisements may be targeted to visitors of our Sites using third-party advertising technology tools, such as cookies and pixels on our Sites.

Most browsers allow you to manage how cookies are set and used as you are browsing, and to clear cookies and browsing data. For more information regarding the management of cookies, please check your browser settings. 

RAINN may collect your email address via cookies and pixels on the Sites, using trusted third-party partners. These partners may combine your email information with other information they have access to, such as your mailing address, so that RAINN may serve relevant marketing offers to you. 

If you do not want RAINN to contact you, please contact us at optout@rainn.org

Information Provided by Third Parties

We may collect or receive Personal Information about you from third parties that is otherwise publicly available. We may combine such Personal Information provided by third parties with Personal Information you give directly to us via the Sites as addressed above.  We may also collect or access Personal Information in connection with our membership in a marketing cooperative for purposes of contacting you to support our fundraising efforts.  

How We Use Your Personal Information

We may use the Personal Information we collect for the following reasons, among others: 

  • To provide you with information about our work or our activities; 

  • To fundraise in accordance with our internal policies and procedures;

  • To organize events that you have registered for and to provide you with information and other materials relating to the content of the event, the speakers, sponsors and other attendees; 

  • To process donations or other forms of support; 

  • To provide our newsletters and publications; 

  • To provide you with relevant advertising;

  • To respond to your questions and provide related services; 

  • To respond to applications for employment or volunteering;

  • To administer our Sites and for other internal operations, including troubleshooting, data analysis, testing, research, statistical and survey purposes; 

  • To improve our Sites and ensure that content is presented most effectively; 

  • As part of our efforts to keep our Sites safe and secure; 

  • To measure or understand the effectiveness of advertising we serve to you and others, and to deliver relevant advertising to you; 

  • To identify new audiences and support our marketing efforts; 

  • In connection with a potential or actual sale, merger, acquisition or other transaction in which an affiliate or third party acquires all or any part of our organization or assets;

  • To make suggestions and recommendations to you and other users of our Sites that may interest you; and 

  • Where we are required by law to use your information for certain purposes. 

Who Your Personal Information Is Disclosed To

We may disclose Personal Information to the following categories of third parties or service providers for the purposes described in this Privacy Policy (see “How We Use Your Personal Information” above), or otherwise as required by law:

  • Service providers that perform credit card, bank, payment and information processing services and order fulfillment services on our behalf;

  • Website analytics services providers, for the purposes described above in the section “Information We Automatically Collect Through Cookies and Other Technology on Our Sites”;

  • The government, in connection with a law enforcement inquiry, court order, subpoena or otherwise as required by law;

  • Customer relationship management providers, including for the purpose of enhancing our customer lists, so we can better target our advertising and marketing campaigns;

  • Marketing cooperatives so that we and/or our third-party partners can better target advertisements and content to you across third party sites, platforms and services;

  • Third-party advertisers, for the purposes described in the section entitled “Information We Automatically Collect Through Cookies and Other Technology on Our Sites.”

Donor Information

We treat information related to donations in the same way we treat information that you provide to us through our Sites. Donor payment information may be collected and processed through third-party processing services. 

Protection of Information

We endeavor to keep your Personal Information secure. We use technical, administrative and physical methods designed to maintain the integrity and security of your information, including the use of encryption and reputable services providers. Please be aware though that there is no such thing as “perfect security” on the Internet, and third parties may unlawfully intercept or access transmissions or private communications. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we will not be responsible or liable for any damages, losses or causes of action arising out of or in connection with the inadvertent or unauthorized disclosure of your Personal Information. You use our Sites and send information at your own risk. 

Children’s Privacy

We do not knowingly collect, solicit or retain Personal Information from anyone under the age of 13. In the event we learn that we collected Personal Information from anyone under the age of 13, we will use our best efforts to delete that information, except if we are required to maintain it by law.

Privacy Rights

To the extent provided by applicable law, and depending on where you reside, you or your authorized agent may have certain rights in connection with your Personal Information, including: (i) the right to obtain confirmation that we hold Personal Information about you; (ii) the right to access, correct or delete your Personal Information; and (iii) the right to opt-out of the processing of Personal Information for targeted advertising purposes. To exercise the rights that may be available to you, or to appeal the denial of a request, please contact us at optout@rainn.org.  We may ask you for additional Personal Information to verify your identity in connection with a request, including your email address and phone number.

Third-Party Sites

This Privacy Policy concerns only the information we collect through the Sites or directly from you and does not cover any website to which the Sites may link. If you choose to visit these third-party sites, you should review their privacy policies to ensure that you understand and are comfortable with their practices concerning your Personal Information. 

Territory

RAINN’s activities are focused on the United States. While the Internet allows our Sites to be accessed from anywhere in the world, RAINN is not targeting its actions or Sites to users in other countries. If you access our Sites from outside the United States, it is your responsibility to comply with local laws in doing so.

Questions

If you have any questions, concerns, or complaints about this Privacy Policy, please send an email to info@rainn.org.

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